The sun was barely up, casting a soft golden hue over the ruins of the City of Wolves. Dust swirled in the air, carried by the faint breeze as I wiped the sweat off my brow. The destruction was worse than we’d thought. Entire sections of the city lay in rubble, the once-proud structures reduced to stone and broken wood.
“We’ll start with the outer walls,” I instructed, my voice steady despite the exhaustion in my bones. “Without them, we’re vulnerable. Kai, take your team and focus on reinforcing the south side.”
Kai nodded, already gathering a group of civilians and a few seasoned warriors who had survived the onslaught. His gaze lingered on me for a moment longer than usual, concern etched in his face, but he didn’t say a word. He knew better than to ask if I was alright—none of us were.
Rose appeared beside me, brushing a lock of hair from her face. She had taken charge of organizing the food rations and directing the workers, her sharp commands keeping everyone on task.
“We’re running low on supplies,” she muttered, scanning the area. “We can stretch what we have for another week, maybe, but after that, we’ll need more.”
“We’ll figure it out,” I replied, turning back to the damaged walls. The sooner we rebuilt, the sooner we could protect ourselves from the council’s forces. My muscles ached as I hefted another stone into place, the rough edges digging into my palms. Around me, others worked tirelessly, their grunts and labored breaths filling the air.
“Hey, Luna,” Rose called after a few minutes of silence, her tone casual, almost too casual. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” I replied, not looking up from the wall I was trying to patch. “What’s on your mind?”
She chuckled softly, a sound that was almost foreign in the midst of all the chaos. “Just curious… you’ve been fighting by Kai’s side for a while now. I’ve seen the way you look at him sometimes.” She paused, watching my reaction, but I kept working, feeling a slight warmth creeping into my face.
“I look at him because he’s a good fighter,” I said, trying to deflect. But I could feel her eyes still on me, unrelenting.
“Oh, come on, Luna. It’s more than that.” She leaned closer, lowering her voice. “You’ve got feelings for him, don’t you?”
I stopped for a moment, gripping the stone in my hands a little tighter. Rose wasn’t wrong. But I hadn’t had the luxury of thinking about love—not with everything falling apart around us.
“Maybe,” I admitted quietly. “But there’s no time for that right now. There’s too much at stake.”
Rose gave me a knowing smile. “You’re probably right. But just so you know, there’s no harm in caring for someone—even in times like these. Kai’s a good guy. And from what I’ve seen, he cares about you too.”
I couldn’t help but glance in Kai’s direction. He was directing the workers, focused and determined as ever. I knew he cared. But with the council breathing down our necks and the future so uncertain, I wasn’t sure what to do with that knowledge.
“Maybe when this is all over…” I started, but Rose cut me off with a laugh.
“When this is all over, you better tell him how you feel, or I’ll do it for you,” she teased, nudging me playfully.
“Fine, fine,” I said, rolling my eyes but unable to hide the small smile tugging at my lips.
We both returned to work, the air between us lighter now, despite the weight of the task ahead. The city wasn’t going to rebuild itself, and we didn’t have time to waste.
The day dragged on as we continued rebuilding the walls, the steady clink of stone and hammer filling the air. My arms felt heavy, muscles straining with every movement, but the work kept me grounded. The city needed to stand again, just like we did.
Kai’s group made good progress on the southern wall, but the damage was far more extensive in other sections. My mind raced through different ways we could speed this up. We didn’t have time for a slow rebuild—not with the council plotting against us.
“Luna, we need more hands here!” one of the Commanders, Sel, shouted, gesturing to the half-collapsed wall behind him. “We won’t have this standing for days at this rate.”
An idea crept into my mind, and I hesitated only for a second before deciding to act.
“Stand back,” I called, stepping forward. Sel raised an eyebrow but gave me room.
Closing my eyes, I felt the familiar cool surge of darkness coil through me, spreading out from my core. The shadows at my feet thickened, rising like tendrils of smoke. Slowly, they wrapped around the large pieces of stone, lifting them with an eerie grace that defied their weight.
“Whoa, okay,” Sel muttered, his eyes wide as he watched. “Didn’t expect you to do that.”
The civilians nearby stopped what they were doing, staring in awe as the shadows lifted the broken stones into place. It wasn’t the first time I’d used my powers around them, but seeing them used for something other than fighting must’ve surprised them.
“Can’t let all the heavy lifting be left to you guys, right?” I quipped, grinning at Sel, who just shook his head in disbelief.
The shadows did their work faster than any group of hands could, positioning the stones where they needed to be. I released a breath, letting the shadows retract as the last piece clicked into place.
Kai approached, arms crossed over his chest, a smirk playing at his lips. “Nice of you to lend a hand. Or a shadow. You’ve been holding out on us, huh?”
I shrugged, pretending to be nonchalant, though I was a bit proud of how easily the power had come to me. “Figured I should save my energy for when it counts.”
Rose piped up from behind me, carrying a pile of planks. “Luna’s just trying to show off now,” she teased. “Next, she’ll be making us all shadow drinks.”
Kai chuckled. “Can you imagine? ‘Hey, Luna, need a refill over here—your shadows seem thirsty!’”
I snorted, shaking my head. “If I could summon drinks with this power, I’d have done it a long time ago. You’d never see me without a mug in hand.”
We all laughed, and for a moment, the weight of everything we’d been through didn’t seem so crushing. It was strange how humor could slip into even the most dire situations—how it made us feel a little more human. I couldn’t remember the last time we had all laughed like this.
Kai slapped my shoulder lightly. “You keep using those shadows like that, and we’ll have this city rebuilt in no time.”
I shot him a look, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t get too
comfortable. You’ve still got plenty of stones to lift the old-fashioned way.”
“Ugh, you’re right,” he groaned, picking up a nearby hammer. “Can’t I at least get help from your powers? Just once?”
“Nope. Get back to it,” I teased, nudging him with my elbow.
A few hours passed, and we made even more progress. The walls were nearly complete, and the civilians were pitching in with every ounce of strength they had left. My shadows helped here and there, lifting beams or shifting rubble, but I didn’t want to rely on them too much. I needed to keep my focus sharp for when the real battles came.
Rose walked up beside me, wiping her hands on her pants, her face streaked with dirt. “Okay, I have a very serious question for you.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
“What do you think’s faster—your shadows or me and Kai arm wrestling to the death?”
I blinked, then burst out laughing. “Arm wrestling? You and Kai? I’d pay to see that.”
Rose grinned mischievously. “Oh, it’s happening. I’m calling it now—loser has to haul all the extra wood across the square. I’ve been practicing, Luna. You have no idea.”
Kai, hearing this, strolled over, a look of mock challenge in his eyes. “Practicing, huh? Are you sure you’re not just trying to get out of more work?”
Rose’s grin widened. “Only one way to find out, wolf boy.”
Before I could blink, they both dropped to the ground in a mock stance, gripping hands and squaring off, their faces deadly serious. I couldn’t help but laugh as they struggled, both dramatically over-exaggerating their efforts. Kai made a show of grunting as if he was straining with all his might, while Rose narrowed her eyes, faking intense focus.
“Oh, this is intense,” I called out, leaning back against a half-built wall. “I can’t watch—who’s gonna win?”
Kai, pretending to falter, gasped, “It’s… it’s too much! Rose, you’re… you’re too strong!”
Rose’s laughter broke her concentration for a moment, and in an instant, Kai flipped her arm to the ground.
“Victory!” he cheered, jumping to his feet as if he’d just conquered a mountain. “Rose, enjoy hauling all that wood!”
She groaned dramatically, rolling her eyes. “Fine, fine. But next time, I’m bringing backup. Luna, you’re on my team.”
“Oh, no,” I said, still chuckling, “I’m not getting in the middle of your rivalry. You’re both on your own.”
By the time dusk began to settle in, we had rebuilt more of the city than I’d expected. The walls stood taller, sturdier. It wasn’t perfect, and it wasn’t finished, but it was a start. And it was ours.
As we called it a day and began to gather for the evening, I felt a strange mixture of exhaustion and hope. We were beaten, bruised, and battered, but we weren’t broken.
The night was calm, a rare quiet settling over the City of Wolves. Most of the others had turned in, their bodies aching from a long day of rebuilding. But I couldn’t sleep. The energy coursing through me wouldn’t let me rest—not yet. I needed to push myself, to see what else I could unlock.
I walked toward the outskirts of the city, where the half-finished walls cast long shadows under the pale moonlight. This far from the campfires and the chatter, the darkness felt alive, welcoming. It was a familiar comfort—the shadows always were.
I stopped in a secluded corner, taking a deep breath as I let the night wrap around me. My shadow powers were strong, but I could feel there was more to them—something just out of reach. I’d touched that power before in the heat of battle, but I needed to control it, understand it fully.
This was my time. Or at least, that’s what I was telling myself to justify training at the oddest hours of the night.
I had been practicing during the day, but it felt...off. Like trying to dance while everyone’s watching, and you have two left feet. The shadows were sluggish, uncooperative, and honestly, kind of rude. But now, under the cover of night, they practically hummed with energy. They wanted to be used, as if they were tired of lazing around in the daylight.
I closed my eyes, focusing on the cold, creeping sensation of the shadows at my feet. They responded instantly, swirling around me in a way that made me feel like some kind of dark sorceress. It was kind of cool, actually. I mean, who wouldn’t want to feel like they could command the very fabric of the night?
The shadows rose higher, thickening until they nearly blocked out the moonlight. I could feel them pulsing, waiting for my next move. I drew in a slow breath, trying to be all mysterious and powerful about it, but honestly, I was grinning like an idiot. The thought hit me like a bolt of lightning: Of course my powers were stronger at night. That should’ve been obvious from the start.
Note to self: nighttime = shadow power time. Add that to the strategy book.
Feeling particularly clever, I decided to push further. I had been playing it safe lately, but something told me tonight was different. What if I could create more than just shields or blind spots? What if I could create…another me?
It sounded ridiculous, even in my head. But the idea wouldn’t let go.
I concentrated harder, imagining what it would look like. The shadows twisted and shifted before me, taking on a vague, human-like shape. I blinked, barely holding back a laugh. It looked like a shadowy blob with arms. Not exactly intimidating. “Well, this is...underwhelming,” I muttered to myself.
But I wasn’t about to give up that easily. “Come on, Luna,” I urged, pumping myself up. “You’re supposed to be a shadow warrior, not some wannabe magician pulling rabbits out of hats.”
I gathered more power, focusing harder this time. The blob wobbled, and slowly, the shape began to refine itself. Arms, legs, a head—finally, a figure stood before me, mirroring my height and stance. I tilted my head, and it tilted back. I waved, and it waved too.
I grinned. “Damn I look good”
The figure didn’t respond, of course. But the fact that I had actually created a doppelganger—a real, moving, shadow copy of myself—was enough to make me do a little victory dance. I mean, who wouldn’t?
“Can you move?” I whispered, feeling a little silly talking to a shadow. But hey, I’d done weirder things.
The doppelganger stepped forward, smooth and precise. My grin widened. This was awesome! I extended my arm, and the shadow mirrored me perfectly. I stepped to the side, and it followed, its form flickering slightly but holding. Okay, I could get used to this.
The possibilities raced through my mind. In battle, this could totally confuse enemies. They wouldn’t know which one was real. I could send the doppelganger in first while I hid behind a tree eating snacks. Or, you know, something more strategic. Focus, Luna, I reminded myself.
As fun as this was, I could feel the strain creeping in. Maintaining the shadow copy wasn’t easy. I was sweating, and not in a cool, “I just did something awesome” way, but in a “wow, this is way harder than I thought” way. The doppelganger flickered again, its form distorting.
“Okay, maybe I got ahead of myself there,” I muttered, releasing the power slightly. The shadow me dissolved into the night, leaving only me standing alone, panting like I’d just run a marathon.
I stared at the sky, feeling a sense of accomplishment and slight embarrassment. I mean, sure, I’d figured out how to make a shadow clone, but it nearly wiped me out in the process. Definitely something to work on before showing off to anyone.
Still, I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself. “I’ll be a one-woman army soon enough. Watch out, world.”
Tomorrow, I’d act like nothing had changed. But tonight? Tonight, I had unlocked something incredible, and nobody had to know that I was barely holding it together. I turned and headed back toward the city, feeling both elated and exhausted. There was still so much more to learn, but for now, I’d take the win.
_____________________________________
-To be continued
ns 15.158.61.20da2
